Beijing: India on Sunday said it is examining "all options" in consultations with the Chinese government to address the concerns of over 250 stranded Indians, including students in Wuhan, the epicentre of the fast-spreading coronavirus.
The death toll in the deadly new coronavirus in China rose to 56 on Sunday with confirmed cases of viral affliction reaching 2,008, including 23 from abroad, Chinese health authorities said.
New Delhi on Sunday opened the third hotline in view of "large number" of phone calls from the Indians who are mostly students, the Indian Embassy in Beijing said.
"In view of a large number of calls received in the two hotline numbers set up by @EOIBeijing in connection with the outbreak of coronavirus infection, @EOIBeijing has decided to open a third hotline number +8618610952903," the Embassy said in a tweet.
The other two hotline numbers are 8618612083629 +8618612083617, the Embassy said.
The Embassy has also said it is examining all options and holding consultations with the Chinese to provide relief to the Indians holed up in Wuhan.
"Over the last two days, our hotlines have fielded nearly 600 calls to respond to concerns regarding this difficult situation. GoI and @EOIBeijing are also examining all options, including through consultations with the Chinese authorities, to provide relief to our affected citizens, another tweet by the Embassy said.
The reference to all options was seen as a pointer to explore the option to evacuate the stranded Indians.
The pneumonia outbreak was first reported in Wuhan City, central China's Hubei Province, in December 2019.
Experts have attributed the outbreak to a new strain of coronavirus that has since spread across China and abroad.
About 700 Indian students are believed to have been enrolled in several universities in the city and surrounding areas.